Helping brands hit headlines with live event marketing
A well-executed live event is often the centrepiece of any marketing campaign – it provides a vehicle to connect brands to influencers and audiences.
Whether it’s through pop-up events, themed exhibitions, tradeshows or international roadshow tours, live events used as a marketing tactic have a long history of helping brands connect with stakeholders on a physical and emotional level.
We know that because we deliver activities like this to some of the biggest brands in the world. Without fail, we see how they can complement marketing campaigns and drive direct and meaningful relationships with people – be they customers, employees, or even the media – in ways that other marketing tactics simply cannot.
Earlier this month we were given a fantastic reminder of how powerful live event marketing can be for companies hoping to influence the media agenda. News that driverless cars are going to be tested in the UK attracted significant international profile, thanks to a simple, well-delivered one-day live event where journalists were invited to come and try the car for themselves. The resulting broadcast minutes and column inches, in newspapers and online, drove a stunning ROI for everyone involved in the project.
Often public relations campaigns can rely on a single idea, at a single location on a single day, However, we know from experience that longer term marketing and brand investments – maybe across different cities, countries or even continents – don’t just help deliver brand awareness; they create brand advocacy, and for PRs and Marketers, that advocacy can become incredibly powerful.
Building blocks for media advocacy with LEGO
As part of a recent project of ours for Warner Brothers to support the European launch of the LEGO Movie, we created a designated space specifically for local market media to conduct interviews and broadcasts over a four-week period.
The definition of success for this project was not rooted in mass audience participation – instead it was focused on creating an experience that the media could use to add vibrancy and colour to their reporting, whether that was through a live broadcast or written copy.
To achieve this, we created a 360-degree branded mobile environment fully immersed in the world of LEGO, inside and out, helping Warner Brothers generate powerful coverage and excitement ahead of the movie’s launch across Spain, Italy, Holland and Belgium.
Steering media interest with Ford
Another great example of engaging with the media came with a pan-European tour we devised for Ford. The objective was to showcase the very latest in Ford car safety to key European media, including radio, TV, national newspapers and influential global bloggers.
By creating two roadshow truck experiences equipped with a unique exhibition hub and test centre, the campaign was able to reach 1,500 influencers in 35 cities across 12 countries in just three months, providing a hands-on experience of Ford safety technology to leading journalists around the continent.
A fleet of demonstration vehicles travelled with each roadshow truck for the media to drive around the test track, delivering a personal experience and fostering deeper relationships in a way that conventional PR and marketing tactics could never have achieved.
Connecting Lenovo with influential bloggers
Although initially planned as a B2B campaign that primarily targeted European decision-makers in higher education and enterprise, Lenovo recognised that by extending the audience to influencers they could tactically support their media outreach efforts.
Throughout the B2B tour, Lenovo offered supplementary and exclusive time to key technology bloggers across Europe – a highly influential target market for the company – providing them with product demonstrations, live trials and interview opportunities, a further opportunity for personal interaction and added media exposure for the brand.
All three campaigns drove positive headlines and added valuable media exposure, demonstrating how a well-planned and strategic PR roadshow truck tour can help brands connect with important influencers, drive content and reach larger audiences – whether the intention is to encourage them to buy a product or become a brand advocate.
To find out how we help brands achieve more using our roadshow truck service, please get in touch.